A case can protect an electronic device from superficial damage (e.g., scratches, etc.) and/or more serious damage resulting from impacts, etc. A case can also help to keep clean the electronic device. These advantages, and others, can be particularly relevant where the electronic device is small and/or fragile by design, such as is frequently the case when the electronic device is a mobile electronic device.
Meanwhile, the electronic device may be configured to be coupled with one or more electrical cables (e.g., an electrical cable for head phones, an electrical cable for coupling the electronic device with one or more other electronic devices, an electrical cable for charging the electronic device, etc.). Frequently, when the electronic device is coupled with the electrical cable(s), the one or more electrical cables are left to hang freely from the electronic device, resulting in undesirable cluttering, tangling, snagging, etc. of the electrical cable(s).
Accordingly, a need or potential for benefit exists for a case for an electronic device that provides protection for the electronic device while also facilitating storage and/or organization of one or more electrical cables and methods of providing and using the same.
For simplicity and clarity of illustration, the drawing figures illustrate the general manner of construction, and descriptions and details of well-known features and techniques may be omitted to avoid unnecessarily obscuring the invention. Additionally, elements in the drawing figures are not necessarily drawn to scale. For example, the dimensions of some of the elements in the figures may be exaggerated relative to other elements to help improve understanding of embodiments of the present invention. The same reference numerals in different figures denote the same elements.
The terms “first,” “second,” “third,” “fourth,” and the like in the description and in the claims, if any, are used for distinguishing between similar elements and not necessarily for describing a particular sequential or chronological order. It is to be understood that the terms so used are interchangeable under appropriate circumstances such that the embodiments described herein are, for example, capable of operation in sequences other than those illustrated or otherwise described herein. Furthermore, the terms “include,” and “have,” and any variations thereof, are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, system, article, device, or apparatus that comprises a list of elements is not necessarily limited to those elements, but may include other elements not expressly listed or inherent to such process, method, system, article, device, or apparatus.
The terms “left,” “right,” “front,” “back,” “top,” “bottom,” “over,” “under,” and the like in the description and in the claims, if any, are used for descriptive purposes and not necessarily for describing permanent relative positions. It is to be understood that the terms so used are interchangeable under appropriate circumstances such that the embodiments of the invention described herein are, for example, capable of operation in other orientations than those illustrated or otherwise described herein.
The terms “couple,” “coupled,” “couples,” “coupling,” and the like should be broadly understood and refer to connecting two or more elements or signals, electrically, mechanically and/or otherwise. Two or more electrical elements may be electrically coupled but not be mechanically or otherwise coupled; two or more mechanical elements may be mechanically coupled, but not be electrically or otherwise coupled; two or more electrical elements may be mechanically coupled, but not be electrically or otherwise coupled. Coupling may be for any length of time, e.g., permanent or semi-permanent or only for an instant.
“Electrical coupling” and the like should be broadly understood and include coupling involving any electrical signal, whether a power signal, a data signal, and/or other types or combinations of electrical signals. “Mechanical coupling” and the like should be broadly understood and include mechanical coupling of all types.
The absence of the word “removably,” “removable,” and the like near the word “coupled,” and the like does not mean that the coupling, etc. in question is or is not removable.
The term “mobile electronic device” as used herein refers to at least one of a digital music player, a digital video player, a digital music and video player, a cellular telephone (e.g., smart telephone), a personal digital assistant, a handheld digital computer (e.g., a calculator, a tablet personal computer, a netbook computer, a portable gaming console, or another device with the capability to display images and/or videos. For example, a mobile electronic device can comprise the iPod®, iPhone®, iTouch®, or iPad® product by Apple Inc. of Cupertino, Calif. Likewise, a mobile electronic device can comprise a Blackberry® product by Research in Motion (RIM) of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada, or a different product by a different manufacturer.